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The prosecution was brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) who carried out the investigation.

Speaking after sentencing, HSE principal inspector Joanne Eccles said: “The industry should take notice of this case, there were no injuries but mistakes were made and could have been prevented."

The company pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4 of the Control of Major Hazards Regulations 1999 and was fined £1,650,000 with costs of £57,644.80.

Problems began during the start-up of its main distillation unit, when extremely flammable hydrocarbons were allowed to enter an unignited furnace.

Heat from another nearby furnace triggered the explosion which destroyed the furnace, starting a number of fires which the fire service had to bring under control.

Stanlow Oil Refinery by Rob Wright

The incident was reported to the EU as a major accident under schedule 7 of the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) Regulations 1999.

HSE investigators found Essar Oil UK Ltd failed to take all necessary measures to prevent or mitigate a major accident with three key failings including the incorrect installation of a safety critical valve.

Essar spokesman Ian Cotton responded on behalf of the company.

He said: "We made clear to the courts from the outset that we accepted responsibility for the incident.

“We take this matter very seriously. Following the incident in November 2013, measures were put in place to ensure it could not happen again.

“No one at Stanlow was hurt and there were no effects on the general public off-site.

“Although the incident happened three-and-a-half years ago, new sentencing guidelines introduced in February 2016 significantly increased the penalties previously available to the court which has been reflected in the size of the fine levied today.”

This is not the first time Essar has been in trouble with the regulatory authorities.

In 2015, Essar Oil (UK) Limited was fined £497,284 and ordered to pay costs of £40,000 in relation to two separate pollution incidents at Stanlow which occurred in 2012 after pleading guilty to three breaches of their environmental permit following a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency.

On July 31, 2012, the roof of an oil storage tank failed under pressure at Stanlow Oil Refinery. This caused a plume of steam and oil to be released into the atmosphere and fine droplets of oil were reported over a large area affecting gravestones at Overpool Cemetery in Ellesmere Port.